10 METRO Monday, November 23, 2009 D METROWorld HIGH-TENSION JOB: A migrant worker straddles the electricity lines at the construction site of Quanzhou South Railway Station built for the Fuzhou- Xiamen high-speed railway in Chinas Fujian province Picture: EPA Denmark: The Danish government said yesterday 65 world leaders had agreed to attend a UN conference in Copenhagen in December that will try to clinch a new global climate deal. Facing splits in the climate talks, Denmark formally invited the heads of state and government of 191 UN member states to come for the final two days of the conference, taking place from December 7 to 18 and originally meant for environment ministers, to push for a deal. Danish officials declined to provide a full list of those who had agreed to attend, but noted leaders from Britain, Germany, France, Japan, Indonesia and Brazil intend to take part. InDIa: Three bombs exploded in Indias northeast yesterday, killing five people and wounding more than 25. Two blasts went off within minutes of each other outside a police station in Nalbari town near the Assam state capital, Gauhati. Indias northeast is beset by scores of conflicts. More than 10,000 people have died in separatist violence over the past decade in the region, which is home to dozens of separatist groups. Assams Inspector General of police, Bhaskar Mahanta, said authorities suspect the militant separatist group United Liberation Front of Asom, is behind the blasts. No group has claimed responsibility. Iran: Opposition leader Mir Hossein Mousavi (pictured) said the government should stop intimidating people into changing their political views. This movement will continue. We are ready to pay any price, Mr Mousavi said. His remarks preceded a planned gathering to commemorate the killing of a nationalist couple by agents in 1998. Irans security forces have warned the opposition not to take part in street protests, which have escalated since Junes presidential vote controversially won by president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. CHIna: A boxing coach is hiring himself out as a human punchbag to frustrated women. Xiao Lin, 33, of Shenyang, northern China, charges 11 for 30 minutes. Its good for me because it toughens me up and its good for them because they can release pent-up emotions. But I have to make them promise not to use any weapons, he explained. Venezuela: President Hugo Chavez has praised Carlos the Jackal, the imprisoned Venezuelan notorious for a series of Cold War-era bombings and murders, saying he was a revolutionary fighter and not a terrorist. Carlos Ilich Ramirez Sanchez is serving a life sentence in a French prison for the 1975 murders of two French secret agents. During a speech to socialist politicians from various countries, Mr Chavez (pictured) defended other leaders wrongly labelled bad guys, including Zimbabwes Robert Mugabe and Irans Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. Italy: Police arrested a Pakistani father and son who allegedly spent just 130 to set up a reliable and untraceable phone network used by the terrorists who carried out last years attacks in Mumbai, India, murdering 166. The two were arrested in Brescia, where they ran a money-transfer agency. The day before the attacks began, the pair allegedly used a stolen identity to send money to a firm to pay for internet phone accounts used by the attackers and their handlers. The arrests, on the eve of the first anniversary of the attacks, underscored concerns over the ease with which small sums can be channelled through money-transfer agencies to fund deadly terror plots. amerICa: Democrats united to defeat Republican opposition intent on inflicting a defeat on President Barack Obama (pictured) and pushed healthcare legislation past a key Senate hurdle. The 60-39 vote at the weekend cleared the way for a full-scale debate on the bill. The legislation is designed to extend healthcare coverage to 31million of the 50million Americans who lack it, crack down on insurance company practices that deny or dilute benefits, and curtail the growth of spending on medical care nationally. Israel: Air strikes yesterday destroyed two weapon-making factories and a smuggling tunnel in the Gaza Strip, injuring several civilians. The Israelis said the attacks, which came as Hamas and other Gaza-based militants said they would stop firing rockets, were in retaliation for recent rocket fire from Gaza. Hamas Fathi Hammad said the ceasefire was to prevent retaliatory attacks and build stability but warned it would respond in the event of any incursions. While Israel went to war against militants nearly a year ago to crush rocket squads, it claims weapons continue to reach them through tunnels under Gazas border with Egypt. 240 saved after ferry goes down By ali kotarumalos lucky: tV shows passengers about to be rescued from the sea after the ferry sank Picture: AFP RESCUERS saved more than 240 people from a crowded Indonesian passenger ferry that sank yesterday in high seas. But 29 people, includ- ing two children, died and at least 17 others were missing last night. A second ferry ran aground near the first sinking off Sumatra island all passengers were saved. The Dumai Express 10 sank in stormy weather 90 minutes into an inter-island trip about 30 minutes after huge waves damaged its bow and water started seeping in. One survivor said he escaped from the ship by breaking a window and was rescued by fishermen. It was too fast... and the ship crew did not tell us about the situa- tion at all, he said. We only man- aged to get out after I broke the glass window on the right side. That was the only way because there were many people jostling for the doors. He said he saw some passengers jump into the sea without life jack- ets. Passing boats picked up dozens and took them for treatment. High waves made the rescue opera- tion difficult. At its peak, there were at least nine ships and several fishing boats searching the stormy waters. More than 17,000 islands make up Indonesia, and ferry accidents have killed hundreds in recent years. Boats are often overcrowded, and safety regulations poorly enforced. index.html2.html3.html4.html5.html6.html7.html8.html9.html10.html11.html12.html13.html14.html15.html16.html17.html18.html19.html20.html21.html22.html23.html